Rescue Squad outgrows facility as calls for help increase

Monday

Nov 18, 2013 at 4:46 PM

Henderson County Rescue Squad Chief Jimmy Brissie will appear before county commissioners Wednesday to update the board on his department’s capital needs, which include the long-range goal of a new facility.

By Emily WeaverTimes-News Staff Writer

Henderson County Rescue Squad Chief Jimmy Brissie will appear before county commissioners Wednesday to update the board on his department’s capital needs, which include the long-range goal of a new facility.The squad’s 40-year-old, five-bay garage on Williams Street is packed to capacity. Three front-line emergency vehicles and four trailers can no longer fit inside the building. Although the department’s services and its force have grown dramatically since it moved into its headquarters in 1973, its metal-sided home offers no room for growth.Calls for the mostly volunteer force are up 20 percent over last year, according to Brissie. The department has answered more than 500 calls so far in 2013.“Last spring, we identified several things that were kind of on our radar as upcoming capital needs,” Brissie said.A new four-wheel-drive ambulance, needed to safely transport crews in times of inclement weather and to help access remote victims, topped the list. In May, commissioners agreed to fund the new $181,000 ambulance, helping the force replace one that was 26 years old.The department was also in need of a replacement rescue truck, but Brissie said they may have found a way to take care of the need in-house. A new facility was a long-term need identified several years ago.“We feel very blessed, very fortunate to have gotten the support we have in the county this year,” Brissie said. “We’re just looking to the next step to make sure we’re able to keep up the level of care and the quality of services the citizens deserve and have come to expect.”The Henderson County Rescue Squad was officially organized in 1957. Today, 75 percent of its force is volunteer, with 25 percent employed part-time.Reach Weaver at emily.weaver@blueridgenow.com or 828-694-7867.